Dodging Self-Incriminations: An Examination of Feigned Miranda Abilities on the SAMA

Assessment ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 975-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Rogers ◽  
Sarah A. Henry ◽  
Allyson J. Sharf ◽  
Emily V. Robinson ◽  
Margot M. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Standardized Assessment ◽  
Legal Knowledge ◽  
Simulation Design ◽  
Floor Effect ◽  
Jail Detainees ◽  
Forensic Assessments ◽  
Within Subjects ◽  
Detection Strategies ◽  
Genuine Effort

Forensic assessments must always consider whether examinees are putting forth genuine effort or seeking to feign legally relevant incapacities. Miranda abilities are no exception when a putatively invalid Miranda waiver might result in the full suppression of an outright confession. Using a within-subjects simulation design, jail detainees were administered a representative Miranda warning and two Standardized Assessment of Miranda Abilities (SAMA) measures: Miranda Vocabulary Scale and Miranda Quiz. As expected, detainees have no difficulty in feigning severe deficits in their recall of the Miranda warning and portraying markedly impaired abilities on both SAMA measures. However, using floor-effect detection strategies, several feigning indicators proved effective at identifying likely feigned Miranda abilities. As an ancillary issue, the Inventory of Legal Knowledge was found to be very effective using both the traditional and revised scoring.

Feigned Adjudicative Incompetence

Assessment ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Rogers ◽  
Emily V. Robinson ◽  
Sarah A. Henry
Keyword(s):  
Cross Validation ◽  
Clinical Presentation ◽  
Response Styles ◽  
Standardized Assessment ◽  
Simulation Design ◽  
Floor Effect ◽  
Psychological Assessments ◽  
Jail Detainees ◽  
Within Subjects ◽  
Detection Strategies

Psychological assessments are highly dependent on the forthrightness and sincere efforts of examinees. In particular, evaluations in forensic settings must consider whether feigning or other response styles are utilized to intentionally distort the clinical presentation. The current study examines the effectiveness of the Inventory of Legal Knowledge (ILK) at detecting feigned incompetency within a sample of jail detainees. As an ancillary goal, several scales of the Standardized Assessment of Miranda Abilities were included in the same within-subjects simulation design. Results of the total ILK score raised concerns regarding the mischaracterization of genuine offenders as “suggestive of feigning.” Pending cross-validation, however, a Revised ILK proved highly effective, using a floor effect detection strategy. Although intended for Miranda-specific abilities, several detection strategies on the Standardized Assessment of Miranda Abilities appeared to be very promising within a broadened context of feigned incompetency.

Embedded WAIS-IV Detection Strategies and Feigned Cognitive Impairment: An Investigation of Malingered ADHD

Assessment ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-56
Author(s):  
Richard Rogers ◽  
Sarah F. Velsor ◽  
John W. Donnelly ◽  
Brittney Dean
Keyword(s):  
Academic Accommodations ◽  
Simulation Design ◽  
Floor Effect ◽  
Adult Intelligence Scale ◽  
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Chance Performance ◽  
Wechsler Adult Intelligence ◽  
Adhd Medications ◽  
Detection Strategies

Malingered attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be strongly motivated on college campuses by recreational use of ADHD medications and to obtain unwarranted academic accommodations. Rather than rely on face-valid (easily faked) ADHD checklists, the study focused on the more complex Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth edition (WAIS-IV; Wechsler, 2008). However, the current literature has not yet investigated well-defined detection strategies for feigned WAIS-IV presentations. Using aprioristic standards, four different detection strategies from the feigning literature were adapted to certain WAIS-IV subscales. For example, significantly below-chance performance was applied to visual puzzles. Using a between-subjects simulation design, 74 undergraduate simulators were compared with archival data on 73 outpatients diagnosed with ADHD at a university psychology clinic. Very large effect sizes (Cohen’s ds from 1.66 to 1.90) differentiated between genuine and feigned ADHD. Two strategies (significantly below-chance performance and floor effect) showed strong promise if cross-validated for other feigning presentations. The study concluded with clinical considerations and future avenues for research.

scholarly journals Feigned Miranda Impairment by Legally Involved Juveniles: The Vulnerability of Forensic Measures and the Development of Effective Screens

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (8) ◽  
pp. 1269-1287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Rogers ◽  
Allyson J. Sharf ◽  
Sarah A. Henry ◽  
Eric Y. Drogin
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Investigation ◽  
Archival Data ◽  
Miranda Rights ◽  
Adolescent Offenders ◽  
Floor Effect ◽  
Scale Scores ◽  
Adjudicated Adolescents ◽  
Detection Strategies ◽  
Very High

Forensic studies have almost entirely neglected research on adolescent offenders and their abilities to engage in malingering and other forms of deception. The present research represents the first empirical investigation into feigned Miranda-specific impairment by legally involved juveniles. Feigners ( n = 62) were compared with archival data ( n = 245) under genuine conditions. With virtually no preparation, juveniles effectively feigned major impairment on the Miranda Rights Comprehension Instruments (MRCI) and most aggregate scores of the Juvenile Miranda Quiz (JMQ). Based on established detection strategies, feigning scales were examined for both the MRCI and JMQ. Consistent with adult detainee research, the JMQ floor effect (JMQ FE) yielded good sensitivities and very high specificities. Low scale scores on the MRCI Comprehension of Miranda Rights–Recognition-II (CMR-R-II) evidenced strong promise at identifying potential feigners for more extensive evaluations. As discussed, forensic evaluators cannot afford to ignore feigned legal incapacities when examining pre-adjudicated adolescents.

Measures of Feigned or Exaggerated Incompetence

2018 ◽  
pp. 107-112
Author(s):  
Steve Rubenzer
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Assessment Instrument ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Competency Assessment ◽  
Atypical Presentation ◽  
Legal Knowledge ◽  
Court System ◽  
Feigned Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Detection Strategies

This chapter describes and reviews the published instruments available to assess feigned incompetence to stand trial. The Inventory of Legal Knowledge has already gained considerable acceptance despite having some significant limitations. The ECST-R Atypical Presentation Scales are included as part of the ECST-R competency assessment instrument and are billed as screening tests for feigned incompetence. However, they address only feigned psychopathology, not feigned cognitive impairment or ignorance of the court system, and are billed as suitable only for screening, not diagnostic, purposes. The strengths and weaknesses of the ILK and the ECST-R are discussed in detail, as are emerging instruments and detection strategies.

The Inventory of Legal Knowledge (ILK) and adults with intellectual disabilities

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malorie E. Watson ◽  
Aaron J. Kivisto
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Legal Knowledge ◽  
Simulation Design ◽  
Cut Scores ◽  
Psychiatric Symptomatology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Adults With Intellectual Disabilities

Purpose Adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) entering the legal system in the USA are at heightened risk of being incorrectly labeled as malingering. The Inventory of Legal Knowledge (ILK) was recently developed to assess response style of individuals undergoing competency to stand trial (CST) evaluations. The purpose of this paper is to present preliminary data on the utility of the ILK with adults with ID. Design/methodology/approach In total, 32 adults were recruited from an American day program for adults with ID. Using a simulation design, the first 24 participants were assigned to the honest responding group and the remaining eight were assigned to the fake bad group. The normative performance of the honest responding group was compared to established norms for adults without ID, the most efficient ILK cut-off score was examined, and convergent validity of the ILK and other malingering measures tested. Findings Compared to the established mean score, the recommended cut-off score, and two independent published samples of non-ID adults, the normative performance of the honest responding ID group was significantly lower. Analyses of area under the curve revealed that the ILK lacked sufficient ability to discriminate adults with ID instructed to respond honestly from those instructed to feign incompetence, and correlational analyses failed to support the convergent validity of the ILK in this sample. Research limitations/implications The present findings do not support the use of the ILK with adults with ID, even with adjusted cut scores. The development of novel malingering measures that can be used in the context of CST evaluations with adults with ID is needed. Originality/value The present study is the first to examine the psychometric properties of the ILK with adults diagnosed with ID and without concomitant psychiatric symptomatology.

Design-Effects in Prospective and Retrospective Memory for Actions

2003 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Jahn ◽  
Johannes Engelkamp
Keyword(s):  
Prospective Memory ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Prospective Memory Task ◽  
Retrospective Memory ◽  
Ample Evidence ◽  
Relational Information ◽  
Design Effects ◽  
Verbal Tasks ◽  
Within Subjects

There is ample evidence that memory for action phrases such as “open the bottle” is better in subject-performed tasks (SPTs), i.e., if the participants perform the actions, than in verbal tasks (VTs), if they only read the phrases or listen to them. It is less clear whether also the sole intention to perform the actions later, i.e., a prospective memory task (PT), improves memory compared with VTs. Inconsistent findings have been reported for within-subjects and between-subjects designs. The present study attempts to clarify the situation. In three experiments, better recall for SPTs than for PTs and for PTs than for VTs were observed if mixed lists were used. If pure lists were used, there was a PT effect but no SPT over PT advantage. The findings were discussed from the perspective of item-specific and relational information.

MMPI-2 in Child Custody Litigation

2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Roma ◽  
Federica Ricci ◽  
Georgios D. Kotzalidis ◽  
Luigi Abbate ◽  
Anna Lubrano Lavadera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Custody ◽  
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory ◽  
Personality Inventory ◽  
Custody Evaluations ◽  
Self Presentation ◽  
Female Population ◽  
Clinical Scales ◽  
Forensic Assessments ◽  
Child Custody Evaluations ◽  
Italian Women

In recent years, several studies have addressed the issue of positive self-presentation bias in assessing parents involved in postdivorce child custody litigations. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) is widely used in forensic assessments and is able to evaluate positive self-presentation through its Superlative Self-Presentation S scale. We investigated the existence of a gender effect on positive self-presentation bias in an Italian sample of parents involved in court evaluation. Participants were 391 divorced parents who completed the full 567-item Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 during child custody evaluations ordered by several Italian courts between 2006 and 2010. Our analysis considered the S scale along with the basic clinical scales. North-American studies had shown no gender differences in child custody litigations. Differently, our results showed a significantly higher tendency toward “faking-good” profiles on the MMPI-2 among Italian women as compared to men and as compared to the normative Italian female population. Cultural and social factors could account for these differences.

Forced Zero Cross-Loading Misspecifications in Measurement Component of Structural Equation Models

Methodology ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 138-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hsien-Yuan Hsu ◽  
Susan Troncoso Skidmore ◽  
Yan Li ◽  
Bruce Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Equation Model ◽  
Model Fit ◽  
Model Specification ◽  
Simulation Design ◽  
Measurement Models ◽  
Fit Statistics ◽  
Path Coefficients

The purpose of the present paper was to evaluate the effect of constraining near-zero parameter cross-loadings to zero in the measurement component of a structural equation model. A Monte Carlo 3 × 5 × 2 simulation design was conducted (i.e., sample sizes of 200, 600, and 1,000; parameter cross-loadings of 0.07, 0.10, 0.13, 0.16, and 0.19 misspecified to be zero; and parameter path coefficients in the structural model of either 0.50 or 0.70). Results indicated that factor pattern coefficients and factor covariances were overestimated in measurement models when near-zero parameter cross-loadings constrained to zero were higher than 0.13 in the population. Moreover, the path coefficients between factors were misestimated when the near-zero parameter cross-loadings constrained to zero were noteworthy. Our results add to the literature detailing the importance of testing individual model specification decisions, and not simply evaluating omnibus model fit statistics.

The Limits of Ego Depletion

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 292-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Wenzel ◽  
Marina Lind ◽  
Zarah Rowland ◽  
Daniela Zahn ◽  
Thomas Kubiak
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Interindividual Variability ◽  
Ego Depletion ◽  
Crossover Design ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Future Research Agenda ◽  
Depletion Effect ◽  
Within Subjects

Abstract. Evidence on the existence of the ego depletion phenomena as well as the size of the effects and potential moderators and mediators are ambiguous. Building on a crossover design that enables superior statistical power within a single study, we investigated the robustness of the ego depletion effect between and within subjects and moderating and mediating influences of the ego depletion manipulation checks. Our results, based on a sample of 187 participants, demonstrated that (a) the between- and within-subject ego depletion effects only had negligible effect sizes and that there was (b) large interindividual variability that (c) could not be explained by differences in ego depletion manipulation checks. We discuss the implications of these results and outline a future research agenda.

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